PROJECT SUMMARY Foodborne illness causes significant morbidity and mortality each year in the United States. Rapid detection and response to potential foodborne disease outbreaks is necessary to limit the number of people and animals affected. Detection of outbreaks in a large country such as the United States requires the ability to collect samples from geographically diverse areas. Within the United States, Salmonella infection is the leading cause of human death due to foodborne illness. Recent outbreaks of human salmonellosis associated with pet food have demonstrated the need for improved detection of salmonellosis and other foodborne diseases in veterinary patients. Detection of foodborne outbreaks requires the ability to rapidly analyze samples from animals, their environment, their food, and drugs. We propose to provide additional capacity for detection of bacterial pathogens in such samples and to serve as a sample analysis site as part of the part of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Veterinary Laboratory Response Network (Vet-LRN) Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory Cooperative Agreement Program. We currently serve as an FDA site for detection of Salmonella in samples from dogs and cats. As such, we have helped to develop methods, participated in proficiency testing, and are currently analyzing samples.